“The destiny of every Biriyani is to be eaten – eaten without guilt.”

Biriyani is a true delicacy in every Indian household. It is a one- dish meal, it’s tasty and everyone loves it. Fish does not require too much of a marination so the whole cooking process could be over in about 45 minutes. Fish biryani – made with boneless cubes of seer fish and marinated in all the spice powders, lightly fried before folding it in between the rice – just heavenly.

Over the weekend, the one thought that crosses my mind is that I should spend the least amount of time in the kitchen and get time to complete the odd jobs I would have missed doing during the week. Then all you can think is a bake or even a Biriyani. As simple as that.

We love our Biriyani – be it a chicken, fish or paneer. All you need is a raita and a pickle and you’re set. A chilled beer alongside would be great.

When trying out a fish Biriyani, care should be taken to handle the pieces of fish as gently as possible to retain the shape as fish is very delicate and could break easily. A very simple recipe – even beginners could try out. The result could surprise you.

Ingredients:

• Seer Fish -1 kg ( cut into big cubes- boneless)
• Ginger – garlic paste -2 tbsp
• Chilli powder- 11/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder-1 ts
• Pepper powder-1 tsp
• Salt to taste

Marinate the fish cubes in the above ingredients for an hour. Lightly fry the fish and keep it aside.

• Basmati rice -4 cups
• Whole spices -2 -3 each ( cloves, Cinnamon, cardamom, bayleaves)
• Onions sliced finely -3 cups and fried till golden brown
• Onion sliced finely -2
• Ginger- garlic- green chilli paste -1 tbsp ( green chillies-4-5)
• Tomato sliced-2
• Chilli powder-1 tsp
• Coriander powder-1 tsp
• Garam masala -1 tsp
• Lime juice of 1 big lime
• Curd-1/2 cup
• Coriander and mint leaves -3/4cup each
• Ghee and oil

Method:

• Wash and soak the rice for 20 minutes in lots of water. Drain thoroughly.
• Heat a mixture of oil and ghee, fry sliced onion till opaque.
• Add the whole spices and fry well.
• Add ginger- garlic- green chilli paste and fry well.
• Add the curd, chopped tomatoes, 1/2 cup each of chopped mint and coriander leaves, lime juice and blend well.
• Cover for 2-3 minutes so that the tomatoes are cooked.
• Add all the spice powders and mix well. Cover and cook for 3-4 minutes.
• Measure out water (6 cups) and bring to a boil. Add salt .
• When the water starts to boil add the washed and drained Basmati rice and cook on a high flame for 5-7 minutes.
• Just before all the water is absorbed, add the lightly fried fish cubes, a little of the fried onions, the remaining chopped coriander and mint leaves, mix well and put off the flame.
• Keep covered till it’s time to serve.
• Garnish with the remaining fried onions, boiled eggs ( optional ) and serve with raita of your choice.

Chefs tips:

• I use Seer fish for Biriyani. The fish should be washed and cleaned in a mixture of curd and rock salt.
• In the place of curd, you could use coconut milk.
• In the place of Garam masala you could use Biriyani masala.
• For every cup of rice, you should add 1 and a half cups of water.
• When frying the onions till brown and crispy, sprinkle a little salt on top to make the browning faster.
• This Biriyani serves 6-8 people and tastes better the next day.

Till my next post,

Cheers

Rose